Commercialization and microfinance interest rates: Usury or just prices?

Prevailing microfinance interest rates can be very high (20-30 percent on average and well exceeding 100 percent in some cases). The number of faith-based (especially Christian) organizations in the field, biblical injunctions against charging interest to poor people, and increasing commercializatio...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:The journal of markets & morality 2014-09, Vol.17 (2), p.381
Main Authors: Wong, Kenman, Richards, Donovan
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Analysis
Christian ethics
Commercialization
Cost control
Donations
Ethical aspects
Ethics
Exegesis & hermeneutics
Initial public offerings
Injunctions
Interest rates
Investments
Loans
Low income groups
Microfinance
Morality
Pilot projects
Poverty
Subsidies
Theology
Usury
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Summary:Prevailing microfinance interest rates can be very high (20-30 percent on average and well exceeding 100 percent in some cases). The number of faith-based (especially Christian) organizations in the field, biblical injunctions against charging interest to poor people, and increasing commercialization present acute ethical tensions. In conjunction with contemporary research, the authors examine biblical passages and reflect theologically, employing a narrative-ethical approach to the issue of interest rates in contemporary microfinance. They conclude that while prohibitions against usury are still appropriate, a broad condemnation of high interest rates in microfinance is presently unwarranted. Kenman Wong and Donovan Richards, "Commercialization and Microfinance Interest Rates: Usury or Just Prices?" Journal of Markets & Morality 17, no. 2 (Fall 2014): 381-404.
ISSN:1098-1217
1944-7841